Settled back into Ham Lake Campground

Last year when we stayed here we were just figuring out this life in an RV, so it feels great to settle into someplace familiar as we start our second year of full-timing.

This is a sweet little park, friendly and inexpensive.  We took our same campsite in the shade again, but we think next year we'll opt for one of the sites next to the pond.

It would be a different view for us and enhance our satellite reception.  But it's hard to beat the coolness of the shade when it gets hot and sticky.

the new improved bird feeding station - only problem is the lack of birds

We had the granddaughters over on Tuesday and did our first walk through of the park.

when the kids come bearing corn the goats come a running

The first item on the agenda was to feed the goats and look for the newest member, Squeaker, who was born just a week ago.  He and his mom must have stayed in the barn, because we never sighted him.  Perhaps next time.

The workers are removing weeds from the beach area and getting it all ready for the warmer weather scheduled to come soon. 

The girls took a walk out to the swing set to see how cold it is.

They reported that it felt pretty nice so I'm guessing that the next visit will involve some swimming and splashing.



Emily spotted what looked like a gum wrapper in the grass, but it was a dragonfly with some bent up wings.  We visited him for a while and then placed him back in his spot.

It looks like there are some geocaches near our area, so perhaps we'll need to get the girls to help us search for those as well.  There's never a shortage of things to do out here.

Long Live the Queen of Canned Ham Lake Living

What is in a name?

As many of you know I am addicted to Safeway Foods coconut curry soup and buy it every chance I can.  So, since we are in a large metropolitan area I searched the internet to see if there was a Safeway nearby where I could shop.

You can imagine my surprise and pleasure when I saw there was a Safeway only 9 miles away!  So I headed out to do the grocery shopping with such high spirits.  I drove past the Cub Foods that is much closer to our location, but I could taste the soup with each mile I traveled.

Soon I was in a not so desireable part of town but since I was so close and in a soup frenzy by now I persevered.

And then there it was!  Safeway.  But not the Safeway I was expecting.  This was a dumpy corner building with bars on the windows and doors advertising liquor and tobacco.

I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry.  Left Brain had no such dilemna - he laughed.

Long Live the Queen of Dashed Hopes

Mandarin Orange Monday

I love dragonflies. 

They are such a brilliant electric blue. 

And what color goes best with blue?  

Why, orange of course!

Long Live the Queen of Dragonflies

Best Friends Forever

Our previous cats barely tolerated each other, so it is amazing to watch these two who are deeply in love.

They don't always sleep together, often they head to their separate corners for long naps.

But often they can seen together snuggling and grooming each other.

George is easily twice Gracie's weight, so sometimes she likes to stretch out and show off her impressive full length.

Life is so much better with this dynamic duo in our lives.

It's hard to picture these two tearing across the RV full speed chasing each other....and then they are like this.

Long Live the Queen of Compatibility

The art and magic of Lois's pond and yard

My friend, Lois, has the same creative juices that I had when transforming my grass into gardens.  She enjoys subtle hidden humor and everywhere you look there is something new to be found and enjoy.

Like my yard, she does much of this work herself, with help from her husband, Lee.  She prides herself on finding items to be up- cycled into artwork instead of cluttering up a landfill.

Most people would just stack their wood into a normal woodpile...not Lois.  She found these two huge tree trunks that were going to be thrown away and cleared out the centers to make a visually appealing and fun wood pile.

Some would say it makes a wonderful "frame" for your photographic subject.

She loves antiques and much of what she uses came from the old family farm and is now finding new life in creative ways.

Many of the artistic piling of objects are simply placed and balanced with no chemicals used to hold them together.

We talked about how this is symbolic of life.

That it is important to arrange your values in such a way to create balance and harmony.

To me it also speaks of how fragile life is, being able to tumble and come undone in a heartbeat.

I guess it also reminded me how "unbalanced" I can be sometimes when things get out of whack.

Even though there is plenty of artwork to enjoy, it's hard not to stop and sniff each of the plants that abound.

The pond is it's own special delight, and even though it is quite large, it's really a small part of the overall yard and gardens.

I have no idea what kind of insect this was that came in to say hello, it's very unusual.  I thought at first it might be a dragonfly, but I'm just not sure.

This metal dog sniffing up the tree cracked me up.

Another collection showing her love of things from yesteryear and showcasing their wonderful colored glass.

You can never have too much metal artwork and this creature visiting the birdbath brought a smile to my lips.

Just when you don't expect it, there's another little burst of color hidden among the plentiful ground cover.

They managed to harvest many of the rocks themselves that are used in the garden, hauling them for a great distance down the hillside.  She is not afraid of hard work and has the arm muscles to show it.

Another balancing act using hollowed out stumps.

More rocks delicately balanced in the garden.

There are lots of places to sit and enjoy the view as you tour this massive yard, and lots of shade to make it enjoyable.

This huge ball was commissioned by her to be created as a large tree ornament.  It also doubles as a bird feeder that allows the birds in but not the squirrels.

Part way up the hill there is an old bike - to me this gives a whole new meaning to having a mountain bike.

Watch out for the metal woman that lurks in the woods!

We came across these sweet little red mushrooms while on our walk.

These are just a small sampling of the polliwogs in the pond, there must be hundreds of them.

But to me the best part of this garden tour was when she told me how much visiting my yard had inspired her.  That was the richest praise anyone can ever hope for.

Watch for more photos of her pond on Photoshop Friday.  There was a sweet little water lily bud that just begged to be photographed and manipulated later.

Long Live the Queen of Garden Friends